Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Forget about the pineapple on pizza debate. Mario Tokyo throws all the pizza rules out the window with toppings like strips of sweet bulgogi beef and potato wedges. For this month's Time Out Sydney column I headed to Strathfield to check it out.

Eat This...

Bulgogi pizza

WHAT IS IT?Bulgogi pizza ($15.90) is what you get when Korea and Italy collide in the kitchen. Start with a thin crust pizza, smother it with tomato and mozzarella cheese and drape generously with bulgogi - tender slices of marinated sweet barbecued beef that make up one of Korea’s national dishes. We could probably do without the sliced Spanish olives on top, but florets of blanched broccoli add colour and crunch. The bulgogi beef topping works surprisingly well, like Korean homecooking meeting teenage comfort food.

WHERE CAN I GET IT?
Head to Mario Tokyo Pizza, an Asian-inspired café serving up pizza and pasta and everything in-between. There’s fried rice listed next to risotto, and a pizza listing that runs from prosciutto to teriyaki chicken.

WHAT'S IT LIKE?
It’s mostly a young Asian student crowd here, drawn in by the modern décor and chirpy red, black and white colour scheme. A mural of cartoons and garbled graffiti along the back wall is trippy yet disarmingly cute. Seating is on a cushioned bench that runs the length of the dining room or funky retro seats in black and white. Smokers huddle around the outdoor tables.

Patata mozzarella pizza $14.90

WHAT ELSE IS AVAILABLE?
Of the 24 different types of pizza, the bulgogi is easily the best of the lot. Cheese lovers will revel in the gorgonzola ($13.90) served with honey, or the sweet corn and mozzarella cheese ($12.90). Skip the patata mozzarella ($14.90), loaded with potato wedges that are more mealy than crisp.

WHAT ABOUT DESSERT?
Don’t miss the honey bread ($8.50), a massive doorstop of soft and sweet white bread that is toasted lightly and then covered in whipped cream, toasted almond flakes and your choice of drizzled syrup.